1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to printers, more particularly to printing with printers with face-up output.
2. Background of the Invention
Many different types of printers are available to users, with nearly unlimited combinations of features. One such feature is face-up printing. Some users prefer to have their documents printed face-up. The document is viewable by the user as it exits the printer into the output tray.
In some instances, the mechanical limitations of the print engine require that the printer output documents face up. The limitations can be due to the paper path, the fusing or toner process, or the inkjet application path for the paper.
Unfortunately, in some instances, face up output causes multi-page documents to end up in reverse order. Since the printer receives the document in the page order in which it was created, first through last, it then prints in that order. This results in page 1 being face up on the bottom of the stack of output, and the last page being face up on the top of the stack.
Therefore, a method is needed to reorder the printing for face up printers that allows the documents to be ordered correctly in the output tray.
One aspect of the invention is a method for reverse order printing. The instructions that would cause the document to be printed are used to create journal files, with one journal file per page of the document. The journal files are accessed in reverse order, allowing the printer to produce the document in reverse order at the printer. In one embodiment, a printer driver frontend is used to trap the control instructions and write them into journal files. A player is then used to access the journal files in reverse order and send them to the printer. In another embodiment, the graphic device interface and the printer driver are used to perform those operations.
This method can also be used to print in booklet form. The journal files are accessed in the proper order for the book to be printed correctly.